Final Fantasy VII: A Story Retold
by Saxyguy
Summary: a retelling of the game with a personal twist. Cloud/Aerith/Jessie, Tifa/Oc, Vincent/Oc.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Saxyguy – Sup folks, this is one of the ones I've been working on for a while yet and just been too lazy to type and post it. This story will contain and Oc (Like every other story I've ever written) and here's a profile.

Name – Satoshi

Age – 19

Height – 6'1"

Hair – Color – Black with orange streak from left temple back

Style – Mid-back length ponytail

Eye color – Orange

Piercings – dangle earring with orange stone in left ear

Tattoos – Flame design up right arm lightning design up left arm

Weapons – twin mithril sabers

Materia – Fire-Elemental, Restore, Lightning-Elemental, and Quake

Clothing – Black muscle shirt, baggy cameo pants and combat boots.

Notes – Rides an orange motorcycle similar to Fenrir, only slightly smaller. Stores sabers in same system as Cloud.

And that's Satoshi. I don't own FFVII and I'm not making profit off this story so you really have no grounds so sue my poor white ass. On to the story.

Tifa sighed as she scrubbed the glass in her hands. She was the owner and bartender for the reasonably popular bar 7th Heaven in the sector seven slums. _'Sure keeping an eye on the hideout is important, but it's so boring…' _she thought as she sighed again. She put the glass away and walked toward the door for some fresh air. As she reached for the doorknob, the door burst open, revealing a red garbed Shinra soldier. Reacting quickly, Tifa snapped her right fist up into the man's jaw before spinning full circle and slamming her left foot into his sternum, sending him tumbling down the bar's front steps. She stepped outside to check for witnesses and came face to face with twenty more soldiers.

"Well boys, looks like we found Avalanche's hideout."

_'Figures. It's always too little or too much excitement…' _Tifa thought. _'Cloud, this would be a lovely time to keep your promise…'_

Reactor 1

Just after Cloud, Jessie, and Barrett boarded the elevator, Cloud sneezed.

"What da hell waz zat Spikey?" Barret asked as Cloud sneezed again.

"I don't know… Maybe someone's talking about me…" Cloud replied as he wiped his nose.

"We're here." Jessie stated as the elevator came to a halt.

"Let's do this." Cloud said as he pulled his buster sword from the harness across his back and checked his materia.

Back at the Bar

Tifa stared at the soldiers, wondering how she could possibly beat all of them. She pulled her gloves on and walked out to meet them. Stopping in the middle of their circle, Tifa brought her fists up in front of her. Everyone froze as a man on an orange motorcycle slammed into the commander before slewing his bike to the side and skidding to a stop, crushing a few more soldiers on the way. The remaining soldiers leveled their rifles at the newcomer. The man calmly placed both hands in the middle of the handlebars of his bike as the nearest two soldiers approached him on either side. When they stepped up next to him, the man pressed a hidden button with his right knee, causing both sides of the bike to snap out, revealing two mithril sabers and hurling the two soldiers away from him. He drew both swords and placed one in the harness hanging behind him at his waist. He got off his bike and leveled his sword at the Shinra soldiers.

"Who do you think you are? Defying Shinra in such a way." One of the soldiers shouted.

The man whipped his sword up like it weighed nothing and brought it to rest on his right shoulder. "I am an Ex-Soldier, a defender of the people and of the planet." The man settled his left hand on the hilt of his other sword as he spoke.

All the soldiers focused on the man, obviously not considering Tifa a threat. Oh how wrong they were. Both of them charged at the same time. The man skidded to a halt and drew his second blade as he was forced to deflect the deadly hail of metal sent his way by the remaining fifteen men. Seeing her chance, Tifa snuck up on one of the men and snapped her foot up into the barrel of his gun, flipping it over his shoulder and into her hands. She shot him in the back and turned on the next few in line. She emptied the clip into the next three, then crouched down and drew the dead soldier's belt knife. Flipping it so she held the point, she flicked it into the back of one man's neck. She dashed forward as the next one turned around. She slapped his gun away and hit him with a quick combo of punches before smashing her fist into his jaw. As he reeled back, Tifa placed her left foot on his knee and flipped back, slamming her right foot into his jaw as she went. Tifa looked up and realized the rest of the men were dead, courtesy of the mysterious sword wielding man.

Said man cleaned his swords off on a dead man's coat before putting them both in his harness and approaching Tifa. "You are part of Avalanche, correct?"

"Yes." Tifa responded, taking note of the strange glow his orange eyes produced. _'He wasn't lying about the Ex-Soldier part…'_

The man's face split into a grin. "My name is Satoshi, Ex-Soldier first class. I wish to join your fight for the planet." Satoshi said, sticking out his hand, which Tifa shook.

"My name is Tifa. I own this bar. The rest of the group is away at the moment but you're more then welcome to join me for a drink until they come back." Tifa said with a smile.

"I'd love to, but we should probably clean up this mess first." Satoshi said as he looked around, allowing Tifa to catch sight of the orange lock of hair running back from his left temple to his ponytail, offsetting the inky blackness of the rest of his hair.

_'There's no way that's natural.' _Tifa thought as they dragged the bodies off to burn them.

Reactor 1

As Cloud set the bomb on the reactor core, Barret kept watch for guards. Just as Cloud connected the last wire, Barrett detected movement in the nearby shadows. "He Spikey; I hope you're done cuz we bout to have company!" Barrett shouted as the Guard Scorpion charged.

Cloud spun around and whipped his buster sword out of the harness on his back as Barret opened fire on the mechanical monstrosity. Cloud shot forward and severed one of the things legs, causing it to fall. Completely ignoring the machine, Cloud sprinted toward Barret. Grabbing the back of the larger man's vest, Cloud began to drag him in the direction of the exit.

"Leggo ya pokey headed fool! We gotta kill dat thing or it's gonna come afta us!"

Cloud looked over his shoulder in time to see the Guard Scorpion level both arms at the fleeing men. Cloud shoved Barret behind him. "Keep the path to the exit clear. I'll deal with him" Cloud said as he raised his sword. The Scorpion fired both shots at Cloud, which he easily deflected. Cloud heard Barret's gun arm firing wildly as he charged into the crowd of guards that had been summoned by the alarm. Cloud charged the Scorpion again, deflecting two more shots and avoiding it's tail laser before he leaped forward, severed one of the thing's arms and landed on it's back. He blocked three strikes from its tail before he chopped it off. Drawing power from his lightning materia, Cloud scaled the back of the scorpion until he stood on it's shoulders. Focusing all the power into his left hand, Cloud punched through the back of the machine's head. "Bolt!" He shouted as he discharged the spell directly into the thing's neural network, causing it to shut down. As the Guard Scorpion fell, Cloud ripped his arm free and leaped to the hand rail of the walkway before dashing along it, easily keeping his balance. When he reached where Barret was pinned down, he dove from the railing, cut down two guards as he flew and rolled to his feet before freezing four more in place with and ice spell.

"Quit playing around! We've only got a few more minutes!" Cloud shouted as Barret threw a grenade into the last group of guards, clearing the way to the exit. As Barret sprinted for the elevator, Cloud paused to help Jessie, who's foot had gotten stuck. He quickly freed her and swept her up in his arms before dashing for the elevator at super human speed. _'That the __Lifestream__ for __mako__ enhancement…' _Cloud thought as he reached the elevator. When he set Jessie down, she collapsed.

"I think I sprained my ankle when my foot got stuck… you'll have to leave me." Jessie said.

"We're not leaving you behind." Cloud said as he handed his sword to Barret. He pulled Jessie onto his back and wrapped his arms around her knees.

When the doors opened, Cloud and Barret took off again.

"Biggs open the doors!" Barret shouted.

Biggs quickly keyed in the first code, causing the door to slide open. He dashed tot eh second console. "Jessie, what's the code?"

"5H1NR4!" Jessie shouted as Barret and Cloud slid to a stop next to Biggs.

The second door slid open and Biggs, Cloud, and Barret dashed for the exit. Just as they reached it, there was a deep thump from the bowels of the reactor and electricity arced over its surface. The four members of Avalanche darted passed Wedge and into the hall beyond hi. Wedge slammed the door just as the reactor exploded. The floor shook and everyone in the hall was thrown o the ground.

As Cloud fell, he pulled Jessie from his back and into his arms, shielding her from falling debris with his body. The lights died and the shaking stopped.

"Everyone in one piece?" Barret asked with a cough.

"Cough, Cough I think so." Biggs answered.

"I'm alright." Wedge replied.

"I'm okay." Jessie said before she felt something warm drip onto her face.

"Hey Spikey, what about you?"

"I'm in one piece, but that's gonna leave a mark." Cloud said with a pained grunt.

Searching his pockets, Wedge found a flashlight and flicked it on. Inspecting everyone, the light settled on Cloud. One of the metal bars that held the ceiling tiles in place had pierced completely through his shoulder, halting mere centimeters from Jessie's face.

Cloud sat up. "Barret, give me my sword and that restore materia we found earlier." Cloud grunted. Barred handed over the requested items. Cloud popped the ice materia free and slipped the restore materia in its place before handing both to Jessie. "Hold these for a second, and can I borrow your bandana?"

"Sure." Jessie replied as she handed it over.

Cloud folded the cloth over and put it in his mouth as he stood. He turned away from the wall and took a deep breath before slamming himself back against the wall, forcing the metal rod to slide farther out of his shoulder. He reached up and ripped it the rest of the way out with a grunt, splashing Jessie with a bit more blood. He handed Jessie back her bandana and took his sword. Drawing power from the restore materia, Cloud passed a hand over his wound and whispered "Cure." Causing the wound to close, but not without leaving a prominent scar. While he was at it, he knelt and healed Jessie's ankle as well. After that, the group blasted its way free of the rubble and split up to head for the train station.

On the way there, Cloud met a pink garbed flower girl. She introduced herself as Aerith. He bought one of her flowers and she thanked him with a peck on the cheek. After that, he headed to the train station and boarded the train with the rest of the group.

After a rather uneventful train ride, they met back at Tifa's bar. When they arrived the ground front was suspiciously clean and there was a large orange motorcycle parked to one side.

"I know that motorcycle… it's his." Cloud muttered before he ran into the bar. The rest of the group followed quickly. They found Tifa talking to a young man with black hair tied back into a ponytail that reached his belt. He wore a black muscle shirt and baggy cameo pants with a pair of black combat boots. He had two mithril sabers stored crosswise in a harness that hung behind him at his waist. The man turned around as everyone entered, revealing the orange stripe running from his left temple to the end of his hair. His oddly glowing orange eyes grew wide when he way Cloud.

"You…" The man said as he reached for his swords.

"Me." Cloud responded as he glared and grabbed his own sword.

Saxyguy – Alright, review peeps! You know you want to! Just push the button.

\/ THAT BUTTON RIGHT THERE!! Ja ne!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Cloud and the newcomer glared at each other with obvious hatred.

_'Well at least they haven't started fighting…' _Tifa thought.

Neither one had drawn a blade yet, but they didn't look like they were going to relax any time soon. They both walked towards each other, halting within arms reach of each other. They broke into wide grins and clasped wrists.

"Man I haven't seen you since that last mission we got separated on!" Cloud said. "Folks, this is Satoshi."

"Pleased to meet you all." Satoshi said cheerfully.

"So how do you two know each other?" Tifa asked.

"We were partners for a time in Soldier." Satoshi responded. "And while I'm thinking about it, I stole your old motorcycle from Shinra for you. It's in garage A7 in the sector 5 slums."

"How on earth are you still breathing? You took yours and mine? Shinra should be after your head!" Cloud exclaimed.

"They are." Satoshi deadpanned.

"How did you manage it?" Cloud asked.

"Did you hear about that patrol that disappeared in the sector 6 slums?" Satoshi asked.

"Dat waz you?" Barret asked as his mouth fell open in shock.

"Yep, although I just waited for the monsters and bandits to attack them first. All I did was finish them off."

"Even so, that's still impressive." Tifa said.

"Meh. Cloud could've done the same thing. They were only second class." Satoshi said with a shrug. "So anyway, Tifa tells me you guys are hiring for Avalanche. That right?"

"Yeah." Barret replied, still somewhat cautious.

Cloud stepped up to Barret. "Hire him. I'll vouch for him. He's easily as good as I am and we need the help to hit reactor 5."

"A'ight, I'll trust Spikey on dis one. You're in. Da pay's crap though."

"Better then being unemployed."

"A'ight, let's get some rest! We gotta big day tomorra!" Barret shouted, leading the way to their basement hideout. After a short elevator ride, they arrived in a room with four large armchairs and a couch. Barret immediately took the couch and propped his feet up on the low table. Marline joined him and the two fell asleep in moments. Biggs and Wedge each took and armchair. Cloud took one of the last two and pulled Jessie into his lap, causing her to blush. Satoshi sat in the last chair before realizing that Tifa had nowhere to sleep. He started to rise to offer her the chair when she pushed him back down. She grabbed a blanket before sitting in Satoshi's lap and draping the blanket over them both.

"If you try anything without my consent, Ex-Soldier or not, I'll beat your ass." Tifa whispered as she curled up and lay her head on Satoshi's shoulder.

"Can I at least kiss you goodnight?" Satoshi asked flirtatiously.

Tifa grabbed his chin and kissed him square on the lips. She started to pull away when he wrapped his arms around her, drawing her closer to him. _'For looking so young, he's awfully good at this…' _Tifa thought as she felt his tongue slide across her lips. She opened her mouth and their tongues danced for a moment before she pulled back. "Goodnight."

The Next Morning

When Tifa woke, she was snuggled up against something warm. Still groggy, she cuddled closet to the warm object and attempted to return to her dreams of a certain black haired youth. She felt something warm press against her forehead for a moment before it pulled away and a voice whispered in her ear.

"Tifa, it's time to get up."

"Hmmm… Five more minutes…" Tifa mumbled.

"As much as I would love to cuddle you for the next five minutes, we run the risk of being left behind if we do."

Tifa's wine-colored eyes snapped open. She found herself curled up in Satoshi's lap, her head resting on his shoulder. She sat up and looked around, noting that everyone was staring at her. "What?" She asked bewildered as Cloud burst out laughing.

"You two were so cute cuddled up together like that." Jessie commented as they prepared to leave.

When they were outside, Satoshi sighed. "I guess I'm gonna have to leave my bike here, huh?"

"Yep. We're taking the train." Cloud said as they walked to the train station. They boarded the train without incident and paired off into different cars. Barret went by himself, Cloud and Jessie took one car, Tifa and Satoshi took another, and Biggs and Wedge took the last. The ride went as planned and they abandoned the train without a hitch. Biggs and Wedge returned to the hideout to keep watch while Barret, Satoshi, Tifa, Cloud, and Jessie worked their way through the underside of the sector 5 plate to reach their destination. They arrived at the lower entrance for the reactor with minimal trouble from the wandering monsters. Jessie quickly hacked the door and they were in. Barret, Cloud, and Jessie headed for the reactor core while Satoshi and Tifa went to secure their exit. Jessie set the bomb without an issue and they joined Tifa and Satoshi.

That's when things went horribly wrong.

Barret opened their 'exit', only to be greeted by several squads from Soldier. Barret stumbled back in shock before they all heard footsteps. They turned toward the noise to see President Shinra emerge from the reactor.

"Avalanche, how convenient." The president remarked. Cloud and Satoshi stepped toward the president. "And who are you?" The president asked.

"Cloud Strife, Ex-Soldier, First Class."

"And I am Satoshi Kumori, Ex-Soldier, First Class."

"Oh. The traitors. Well I can't be expected to remember everyone's name. Unless you become another Sephiroth." The president said in an offhand manner. He raised a hand and snapped his fingers, summoning a hovering machine. "This is Airbuster the Techno Soldier. I'm sure the information he collects from your bodies will be useful in future experiments." The president said as Airbuster slid passed Cloud and Satoshi to threaten the rest of the group. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a dinner to attend."

"Dinner my ass!" Barret shouted as he raised his gun arm, only to have the president's helicopter cut off his shot. As the president made his escape, Airbuster launched two grenade like objects at Tifa, which she swatted away to burst harmlessly over the sector 5 slums. Jessie took out the ice materia Cloud had given her the day before and fitted it into a slot in her bracelet.

Satoshi sheathed his right hand blade and resettled his left sword into a two handed grip. Focusing for a moment, Satoshi activated his elemental materia, causing lightning to crackle along his blade. Cloud drew power from his own lightning materia and hurled a bolt spell at the machine's back as Satoshi charged. Cloud's attack clawed along the thing's right arm while Satoshi slashed into it's rear circuitry. As Airbuster turned to face the two men, Cloud called out to Jessie.

"Now! Freeze it to the walkway so it can't turn!"

"Ice!" Jessie shouted, pointing at the catwalk underneath Airbuster. Ice crystals formed rapidly, binding the techno soldier in place.

Tifa threw her own bolt into Airbuster's rear circuitry as Barret charged up an orange ball of energy at the end of his gun arm before firing it into the back of the machine's head. Airbuster started to twitch when Cloud and Satoshi both charged it and thrust their swords through the front armor plating on its torso. The two Ex-Soldiers looked at each other.

"Shit." They said in unison before Airbuster exploded, taking out the catwalk underneath them. They both managed to catch a hand hold on the broken walkway, halting their fall on the wrong side of the gap for the others to help.

"Barret, get out of here!" Cloud shouted.

"What about you?" Jessie exclaimed, not wanting to leave them behind.

"We'll be fine. Get away before the bomb goes off!" Satoshi said. Barret wrapped his arms around the two women and began to drag them away as the bomb went off, causing the catwalk to shake violently. Jessie and Tifa turned back in time to see Cloud and Satoshi plummet out of sight. The two men tumbled through the air for several seconds before they slammed into something and everything went dark.

Saxyguy – Alright, new chapter for you all to enjoy. If you haven't figured it out by now, this story mostly tracks the game with a few major changes. Now I have to post a vote to all of you. Once I finish with the game's storyline, do you want me to go on to Advent Children, come up with something new, or maybe even look at a Kingdom Hearts crossover? Voting is open until I finish the first plot arc, which will be a long ass time from now. And you may only vote once! No cheating! Jan ne!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Cloud's return to consciousness was a long trip. When he finally opened his eyes, he found himself staring into a pair of bright green eyes.

"Oh, you're awake!" The woman above him said happily. "I thought you might not make it. You fell though the roof. The flowers must have cushioned your fall. You and your friend scared me half to death, crashing through the roof like that." She said pointing over to Satoshi, who was currently sitting rubbing his head. She helped him sit up. "My name's Aerith. What's yours?"

"Cloud." He replied as he felt along his head for knots. "How long was I out?"

"About an hour. Your friend woke up just before you did." Aerith said as Satoshi rose and joined them.

"We need to get back to sector seven and rejoin the others." Satoshi said.

As they were talking, a red haired man slipped inside the door.

Aerith noticed him; as did Cloud and Satoshi, who started reaching for their swords.

"Have either of you worked as bodyguards before?" Aerith asked.

"Yes. But I don't work for free." Cloud replied. Before Aerith could open her mouth to offer a price, Cloud interrupted. "We can discuss a price later. Where's the nearest exit?" Satoshi shook his head at Cloud's antics.

"This way!" Aerith said as she stood and darted for a door in the front of the church. Cloud and Satoshi followed her as she slammed the door open. Satoshi paused to swing the door closed before following Cloud and Aerith up the stairs. They began to cross the rafters when the Soldiers entered the room below. The Soldiers turned their guns upward and began to fire on them. Cloud and Satoshi pushed Aerith out of the way as they drew their swords to deflect the hail of metal sent their way. Several of the bullets sank into the wood of the rafters below them. There was a loud crack as the rafter beneath Satoshi gave way. He fell passed the soldiers and into the basement of the church. As he landed, he pitched forward into a roll to avoid shattering his legs. He rolled to his feet and readied his swords as two of the Soldiers turned and fired on him. He dodged the majority of the bullets and deflected those that he couldn't. Cloud turned to help him when Satoshi waved him off.

"Get Aerith out of here! I'll take care of these guys!" he shouted as he slowly worked his way up the rickety staircase. When he reached the level the soldiers were at, they charged at him with batons.

The first one never even got close. Satoshi slashed clean through his baton and opened him up from his shoulder to his hip. The man fell back with a cry and another stepped up to take his place. Satoshi blocked his strike and side stepped a strike from another soldier. As the soldier stumbled passed him, Satoshi flipped his left blade into a reverse grim and stabbed him in the chest. The last two came at him from different sides. He blocked both of their strikes with ease and tripped one of them down the stairs before stabbing his right blade into the floor and throwing the other one after him.

"Satoshi! Quit fooling around and let's go!" Cloud yelled from the rafters.

Satoshi replaced both of his blades in his harness and grabbed Reno's arm as he attempted to strike him with his baton. "You should know better then that, Reno. You're no match for me." He said before slugging him across the face. As Reno fell, Satoshi turned and scaled the stairs to rejoin Aerith and Cloud.

"Took you long enough." Cloud teased as they moved along the rafters. They exited the building through the hole Cloud and Satoshi had left in the ceiling. The three of them clambered across mountains of junk to reach the sector five slums. When they reached solid footing once more, Cloud stopped. "Where is garage A7?" Cloud asked.

"Oh, you want Fenrir back I take it?" Satoshi said as he led them toward some large buildings. Walking up to a seemingly random garage, he punched in a few numbers on a keypad next to the door and it began to lift.

"What's a fenrir?" Aerith asked as the door continued to lift.

"This." Cloud said as he ducked under the door and approached his beloved motorcycle. "This thing was how I got around back in Soldier. Satoshi here managed to steal it for me." Cloud said as he ran a hand along the side. "I wonder…"

"Yes your swords are still in the storage racks." Satoshi said as Cloud pressed a button and the sides of the bike sprang out, revealing eight individual blades. Cloud grinned like a kid who just got Christmas early as he pulled the swords out and started assembling them. Once he was finished, Cloud placed the newly assembled sword and his buster sword in the racks and closed them. "Hop on. We'll use this to get to your house." Cloud said as he started the engine. Aerith sat behind Cloud and Satoshi drew his swords before sitting behind Aerith, facing back. Cloud revved the engine a bit and they took off, spitting gravel all over the garage. They reached Aerith's house in next to no time.

"Mom, I'm home! I brought my two bodyguards Cloud and Satoshi with me." Aerith called as they entered the house.

"Bodyguards? Were you followed again?" a middle aged woman said as she descended the stairs.

"It was okay, I had them with me." Aerith said, pointing to the two men standing behind her.

"Thank you for taking care of my daughter."

"I hate to run like this, but Cloud and I really need to get back to the sector seven slums. We have to meet some friends there." Satoshi said.

"Well it's almost dark out, so I'll take you tomorrow." Aerith said. "Let's get some sleep."

The Next Morning

Cloud and Satoshi woke at the crack of dawn, as usual. They woke Aerith and had a quick breakfast. While Aerith and Satoshi cleaned up, Cloud stepped outside to start up Fenrir. They got on the motorcycle and set off toward the sector seven slums. It took them a little over an hour to make it back to Seventh Heaven. When they arrived, they found Tifa missing.

"Where's Tifa, Barret?" Satoshi asked as Jessie almost tackled Cloud.

"When we got back from da reactor, I found dis man actin all suspicious so I caught im and squeezed some info from im. Dat's when Don Cornero's name popped up. I told Tifa ta stay away from dat guy, but I suppose she didn't listen." Barret said, his words causing Satoshi to go red with rage.

"If that fat fuck does anything to her, I'll make him beg for death." Satoshi growled as he gripped the hilt of one of his swords tightly.

"Satoshi, calm yourself. Even if you rush off now, it won't do Tifa any good. You're going to need some help. First, let's go to the sector six slums and see what's what." Cloud said. "Aerith, I'm sorry but can you get home by yourself?" Cloud asked.

"Don't even think like that. I want to help." Aerith said as Cloud and Satoshi started for the door. Aerith followed them outside. "I can help you. I know about the Don." Aerith said.

"What do you know?" Satoshi asked as they reached their motorcycles.

"I know that Don Cornero is currently looking for a wife. I also know that every night, he takes four girls and chooses one to sleep with. If we get there fast enough, counting Tifa, we have four people. You two would need to dress up. But we would be able to get the information you want guaranteed." Aerith said as Satoshi and Cloud got on their motorcycles.

"Normally I would try to say no, but we could use the help." Cloud said with a sigh. "Hop on." Aerith got on Cloud's bike and they took off for the sector six slums. After a thirty minute ride, they arrived on the outskirts of sector six.

"I just realized something. Why don't we find Tifa, bust into Cornero's mansion, and interrogate him?" Satoshi asked. "Cloud and I should be able to handle any guards Cornero might have."

"That's a actually a pretty good idea." Cloud said. Let's go find Tifa." He said before revving his motorcycle and speeding off.

They found Tifa outside of the Honey Bee Inn. She appeared to be arguing with one of the men who ran the place. Satoshi walked up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. Tifa spun around, whipping Satoshi with her hair. "Wha…?"

Satoshi grabbed her and pulled her into a nearby alley. "Cloud is here. He knows what you're up to and we have a better plan." Satoshi said.

"Really?" Tifa asked, crossing her arms.

"Yeah. With all four of us, we can simply break in and interrogate Cornero. There's no need for you to play at being a whore." Satoshi said. "Cloud and I can handle the guards if you and Aerith can get Cornero to talk, we'll be fine."

"Alright, where's Cloud and what's your plan?" Tifa asked, allowing herself to be led away by Satoshi.

Don Cornero's Mansion

There was a knock at the door and one of Cornero's guards stepped up to the door to answer it. As soon as he grabbed the doorknob, the door exploded inward, hurling him across the entryway. Two motorcycles, one black and the other orange, skidded to a halt. Four figures leaped off the bikes, two of which dashed upstairs while the other two drew swords. Satoshi followed the girls upstairs and took up a position near the door they had entered while Cloud split off one of his swords and stood guard over the bikes. Several guards with batons charged out of one of the first floor doors and headed right for Cloud. The Ex-Soldier parried and dodged, making his fight look more like a dance. A few guards climbed the stairs toward Satoshi, who placed his left blade in his harness and drew power from his elemental materia in his blade. There was a fwooshing sound as his blade was wreathed in flames. He stepped forward as the guards reached the top of the stairs. He brought his blade down in a brutal chop that nearly cut the first man in half. He spun the sword around behind him and brought it across in a horizontal slice that parted the next man from his legs. With a flourish, he drew his second sword and activated his elemental materia, sending lightning crackling along its edge. They fought off two waves of guards in the same manner when Aerith and Tifa came out of Cornero's room looking dazed.

"Let's get out of here for now, you can tell us what you found out later." Satoshi said as he led them down the stairs and to their motorcycles. Cloud replaced his swords and hopped on his bike. Aerith climbed on behind him and he took off out the hole in the door, followed by Satoshi and Tifa. They rode straight back to Tifa's bar. When they arrived the first thing Tifa did was mix herself a drink.

"What did you find out?" Satoshi asked.

"Shinra plans on dropping the plate on us. They're going to kill everyone in sector seven just to stop us…" Tifa said, stunned.

"When?" Cloud asked. "Do we have any time to prepare?"

"They're on their way now." Aerith said.

"Aerith, can you take Marline to your house?" Cloud asked. "The rest of us will try to find a way to defend the pillar."

"Jessie, Biggs, Wedge, Ya'll go wit Aerith. Make sure she get ta her house wit Marline." Barret said. "Spikey, Tifa, Satoshi, an me'll take care of dis."

Saxyguy – Wow, I love not having a job. I can pop chapters out at an amazing rate! You'll probably see several new chapters out of me in the next few days. Ja ne!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The four remaining members of Avalanche hopped on Cloud and Satoshi's bikes and sped toward the support pillar in the center of sector seven. They skidded to a stop to see several Shinra Soldiers approaching the stairs that led to the platform. Barret leveled his gun arm at them and fired a stream of hot metal into their midst, causing them to scatter and dive for cover. The distraction allowed the others to get off the motorcycles and dash for the stairs. Cloud and Satoshi cut a swath through the regrouping Soldiers and Tifa charged up the stairs. Barret arrived at the base of the stairs as Cloud and Satoshi fought off the rest of the Soldiers. Tifa shouted down to them from the platform. Without a second thought, Satoshi turned and barreled up the stairs, leaving Cloud and Barret to deal with the last couple Soldiers.

Satoshi arrived at the top of the pillar to see Tifa fighting off Reno.

"Reno, we both know you're no match for me alone, and Cloud will be up here in a few seconds, so what do you think you're doing?" Satoshi asked arrogantly.

"Who said he was alone?" A voice behind Satoshi asked. Satoshi spun around and caught the fist speeding toward his head.

"Rude, nice to see you too." Satoshi said before he grabbed Rude's sleeve and turned away from him, flipping him over his shoulder. Rude stood quickly and hit a button on the panel in the center of the platform before he turned back to face Satoshi. "What was that?"

"The emergency plate release system." Rude replied. "The plate is coming down and you can't stop it." He finished as he and Reno jumped over the railing of the platform. They heard the thump of helicopter blades beating the air as a Shinra attack chopper rose above the platform. Tseng and Aerith sat on the skids.

"Aerith!" Satoshi and Tifa shouted.

"Don't worry she's alright!" Aerith shouted to Tifa before Tseng slapped her.

"Good luck disarming that one. It's a Shinra emergency plate release system. Only Shinra executives can set up or disarm it. Other then that, it'll blow up the second some fool touches it." Tseng said with a laugh as the helicopter banked and left.

"What do we do?" Tifa asked.

"We get to the bikes as fast as we can and leave." Satoshi said calmly as he grabbed Tifa by the arm and pulled her toward the stairs. They took the stairs three at a time and reached the bottom of the pillar to find Cloud and Barret staring up at the pillar.

"What happened?" Cloud asked, looking over at Satoshi.

"Rude activated the emergency plate release system. We gotta go NOW!" Satoshi yelled as he pulled Tifa over to his bike. The four of them jumped on the bikes as sped off, spraying dirt and gravel in their haste to escape to sector six. They reached the gate just as the pillar exploded. The rush of displaced air caused both bikes to slew to one side. Cloud somehow managed to keep Fenrir balanced and skidded to a stop before planting a foot to keep his bike up. Satoshi and Tifa weren't so lucky. Satoshi's motorcycle caught its rear tire on a piece of debris, causing the bike to snap up straight and come to a sudden halt, throwing both Satoshi and Tifa from their seats. Satoshi managed to grab Tifa while in midair and curl his body under hers. Fortunately, they landed in the sandbox of the old playground nearby. There was a large cloud of sand kicked up by their landing, and they broke out the far side of the box and slid to a stop. Satoshi sat up, still cradling Tifa in his arms, and watched as the plate slammed down on top of the slums. Tifa flinched at the crash of metal hitting the ground.

"It's over." Satoshi said sadly as he stared at the jagged metal debris that used to be the gate to sector seven slums. As the dust settled, Tifa silently cried over the loss of life caused by Shinra.

"A…All those p…people… killed… by Shinra…" Tifa sobbed as she wrapped her arms around Satoshi, burying her face in his chest.

"Dey got Aerith… did dey keep her from getting Marline outta da slums?" Barret wondered.

"I doubt it. Remember, Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie were with her, she probably went with them to allow the others to escape." Cloud said as Satoshi and Tifa stood and returned to Satoshi's bike. "Satoshi, we're going back to Aerith's house. That's probably where they took Marline." Cloud said as he restarted Fenrir's engine. Satoshi quickly freed his bike's rear tire and he followed Cloud through the sector six slums. They parked both bikes in front of Aerith's house. Cloud was the first one into the house, followed closely by Barret. When Satoshi and Tifa entered the house, they saw Barret hugging Marline while Cloud and Jessie embraced.

"I'm sorry about Aerith. The Turks took her." Cloud said as he released Jessie.

"I know. They took her from here. She went with them to protect all of us." Aerith's mom said quietly.

"Don't worry. I'm going to get her back from Shinra." Cloud said before he turned to Satoshi. "Will you take care of Jessie a bit?"

"What's that supposed to mean? I'm going with you!" Jessie and Satoshi said at the same time. Satoshi glanced over at Tifa before she spoke up.

"Don't even think about telling me to stay behind. I want to save Aerith too." Tifa said defiantly. "Plus I want to pay the Shinra back for all the innocents that died in the sector seven slums."

"Alright." Satoshi said as he shrugged. "I figured you'd say that." Satoshi said with a grin.

"Wedge, Biggs, dis time we're goin into da heart of da Shinra. I want da two of you ta look afta Marline for me." Barret said as he followed Cloud, Jessie, Satoshi, and Tifa outside. Barret walked out to see the two men kick the bikes to life. Jessie climbed into the middle seat on Fenrir and wrapped her arms around Cloud's waist. Tifa did the same with Satoshi as Barret walked over to Fenrir. Barret swung a leg over Fenrir and sat leaned back against Jessie as he checked his gun arm before looking over his shoulder and flashing Cloud a thumbs up. The two motorcycles roared as they sprayed dirt and gravel as they took off for the Shinra headquarters.

Two hours later

The two motorcycles sat idling side by side as the remaining members of Avalanche conversed on how they were going to break into the building in front of them.

"I suggest a quiet break in." Tifa said. "I saw some emergency stairs over that way as we rode by." She finished as she pointed around the corner. Jessie nodded in agreement.

"Even if we do that, we'll still need a distraction; otherwise we'd get caught by security. I doubt their security is that loose that we'd get away with that." Satoshi said.

"Whaddaya mean ya doubt?! Ya don't know?!" Ya talkin like ya neva been here befo!" Barret exclaimed.

"Neither of us have, really." Cloud said simply. "I like Satoshi's plan. Tifa; you and Jessie sneak in on the stairs, Me, Barret, and Satoshi will break in the front and cause some noise. We'll meet back up on the 59th floor." Cloud said. Tifa and Jessie climbed off the bikes and hurried around the corner toward the stairs. "Ready?" Cloud asked.

"Yeah." Barret replied as he tightened his grip on the edge of the seat.

"Yep." Satoshi responded as he drew his swords from the storage racks and slid both into the harness on his back.

The two men revved their engines before Satoshi popped the clutch an instant before Cloud, smoking his rear tire for a moment before he was sent careening forward. He shattered through the glass doors and cut down the first guard as he stepped forward before he was passed the front desk and on his way to the stairs that led to the elevators. Cloud screamed through next, deftly avoiding the panicking workers as Barret took careful aim to shot down the guards they passed on their way to the other set of stairs. They both skidded to a stop in front of the elevators and hopped off the bikes. The looked around to see if there were any guards still standing before they boarded the elevator and headed for the 59th floor.

The doors opened onto the 59th floor and they stepped out of the elevators. They looked across the mostly open floor to see three guards standing in front of the elevators to the 60th floor. Barret smirked evilly as he pulled a grenade from his jacket and pulled the pin before tossing it at the guards' feet.

The three guards looked at the metal object in abject terror. "OH SHI…" One of the guards got out before the grenade went off, blowing all three into little chunks.

A nearby door banged open and Tifa and Jessie hurried out. "What was that?" Tifa asked.

Satoshi and Cloud both pointed at Barret. "He did it." They said simultaneously. Barret cringed slightly as Tifa leveled a glare at the large man.

"Don't do that again. You scared us." Tifa ground out as Satoshi bent and picked up the keycard left by the guards.

"Looks like we can get to the next level now." Satoshi said as he held the card aloft. He stepped over to the elevators and swiped the card through the reader. One electronic beep later and the door slid aside. They piled into the elevator before pressing the button and ascending to the 60th floor. After leaving the elevators, they saw several statues with guards pacing behind them. They snuck into a nearby supply room to bypass the first line of statues. They stepped out of the room behind the first row of statues and began to sneak across the room toward the stairwell, using the second row of statues as cover from the guards. They hurried up the stairs and found themselves in a cafeteria-like lounge. Cloud asked around about Aerith and got a keycard from one employee who mistook them for the Shinra Repair division. They used the card to board the elevator for the 62ond floor, where they met with the mayor of Midgar. After a quick discussion, the mayor gave them his Keycard, giving them access to the next several floors. They decided speed was of the essence and skipped straight to the 65th floor, where a large model of Midgar dominated the center of the floor. As the team stared at the model in awe, Satoshi and Cloud noticed that several pieces were missing. After a quick search of the floor, they found the pieces and reassembled the model. Once that was accomplished, they heard a click as a card popped out of a slot near the edge of the model.

"Keycard 66." Satoshi read as he took the card. "That was amazingly easy."

They proceeded to the next floor with caution, knowing they were getting close. After sneaking around the floor for a bit, Cloud spotted the President of the company walking into a conference room. He led the team to a nearby bathroom, where they climbed into the air ducts. They crawled in the direction of the conference room for a few moments before they heard voices. They gathered around the grate and eavesdropped on the meeting. After a discussion on Mako rates and weather or not to rebuild sector seven, Hojo walked in. They talked about Aerith and her connection to the Promised Land. That was when Hojo revealed his plan to breed Aerith so they would be able to do all the research necessary, which would take longer then Aerith would live. After the meeting, the members of Avalanche retraced their way back to the bathroom and quickly located Hojo. They followed him up to the next floor. They were nearing the steps for the floor after when Cloud saw it.

"What is this doing here? Did they move it…?" He muttered as he stepped closer and peered in the small window on the door. He looked for a moment before clutching at his head and falling to his knees in pain. Jessie caught him as he fell back.

"Cloud, what's wrong?" Jessie asked, concerned.

"Is it still alive? Is it moving?" Cloud asked, prompting Barret to look into the tank.

"WHAT DA FUCK! Where's da damn HEAD?" He exclaimed as he jumped back. Barret shuddered in disgust. "Yeah, da damn thing looks like it's still alive." Barret told Cloud.

Cloud shook his head to clear it and stood. "Alright, this is a problem for another time. I'll explain later, but right now we need to save Aerith before they try something horrible." Cloud said as he led the way to the elevator Hojo had disappeared into.

They rode up to the next floor and saw Aerith in a glass cage. "Let her go!" Cloud shouted as he pulled power from his lightning materia, causing lightning to crackle along his right forearm.

Hojo laughed for a moment. "Boy if you kill me, who will operate all of this delicate machinery?" He pointed out before pressing a button, causing the small elevator behind Aerith to start moving.

"Cloud, help!" Aerith shouted as she pressed up against the glass door. As they watched, a red lion like animal appeared from the elevator behind Aerith. It glared balefully at the poor flower girl, causing her to slump to the floor and shiver in fear.

Thinking quickly, Barret leveled his gun arm at the door. "Aerith, get to one side!" He shouted. Aerith dove to one side as Barret shot the door off of its hinges.

"MY SPECIMINS!" Hojo shouted as he dashed forward. He had just reached the door when the red lion slammed into his chest, sending him to the floor in a heap. Cloud slipped into the cage and picked Aerith up.

"Let's get out of here!" He shouted as he and Satoshi turned to leave by way of the elevator they had arrived on.

"Wait!" a voice shouted from behind them, causing Satoshi and Tifa to stop and turn back.

"Who was that?" Tifa asked Satoshi.

"It was I." The red lion said as he stepped off a motionless Hojo. "I would like you to take me with you."

"You can talk?" Satoshi asked.

"Yes I can talk. I'll talk all you want later but right now we need to leave. My name is Red by the way." He said as they followed the rest of the group to the elevator.

They descended to the floor below without incident and made their way to the next one to the lobby. They stepped into the elevator and Cloud approached the controls when Rude and Tseng stepped in with them.

"Could you press up please?" Rude asked. Cloud growled deep in his throat but consented, knowing they were caught. After a meeting with the president, they were tossed into cells. Red and Barret went into one, Aerith and Jessie went into another, Tifa and Satoshi were thrown into one more, and Cloud got one to himself. As they settled down to figure out how to escape, Red picked up a strange set of noises. Thinking nothing of it, Red ignored it and they soon slipped off to sleep.

In another cell, Aerith and Jessie were chatting back and forth. "So then I hired him as my bodyguard, and we still haven't agreed on a price." Aerith said.

"Wow. You've had it rough." Jessie replied sympathetically. "You've had to deal with the Turks all your life?"

"Yep. You wouldn't believe how much it made my day when Satoshi punched Reno. He's had it coming for a while now." Aerith said, causing Jessie to laugh.

"I kinda caught that impression off of most Shinra employees." Jessie said as she flopped back onto one of the two beds. "We'd better get some sleep. Knowing Shinra, tomorrow will be interesting."

Cloud awoke to find the door to his cell open. He poked his head into the hall and saw the dead guard at the end of the hall. Taking advantage of the situation, Cloud hurried down the hall and took the man's keys before coming back and opening the rest of the group's cells.

The first cell he happened to open was Aerith and Jessie's. The two women looked at him curiously for a moment before Aerith asked a question. "How on the planet did you get out of your cell?"

"I woke up and the door was open. Something has gone terribly wrong. All the guards in this area are dead." Cloud said as he beckoned the two women from the cell. Next, Cloud opened Barret and Red's cell. They were quick to join the others in the hall. Barret moved to the end of the hall while Red left to scout out the situation in the rest of the building. Cloud opened the last cell and found Satoshi seated on the floor with his back against the wall and his head down, clearly still asleep with his arms wrapped tightly around Tifa, who sat in his lap, leaned back against his chest. "Wake up. Something happened and I think we need to take the time to escape." Cloud said, waking the two. Once everyone was gathered in the hall, Red came back with news.

"Everyone I saw was dead. They were all killed by a sword." Red said, causing Cloud and Satoshi to pale.

"What's wrong?" Tifa asked.

"There's only one man who could have done something like this. Sephiroth." Satoshi said, his voice dropping to a whisper when he said the name.

"I thought he was dead. He was supposed to be dead." Cloud said as he shook his head. "We have to check to be sure. If he was here, he'd have gone after Jenova." Cloud finished as he led the way down the hall.

They arrived at Jenova's holding tank, only to see a twisted metal wreck where the container once stood.

"Oh shit…" Satoshi whispered as Cloud stared blankly at the wreckage in front of them.

"Any takers on whether or not he's still psycho?" Cloud asked.

"Not now Cloud." Satoshi replied. "We should check the top floor, the blood path leads up the stairs." Satoshi said as he led the way toward a set of stairs.

They arrived in the President's office to see the fat man slumped over his desk, pinned in place by the sword through his back.

"Sephiroth definitely did this." Cloud murmured.

"How can you tell?" Aerith asked.

"Only Sephiroth can use that sword." Satoshi replied pointing to the four feet of visible steel protruding from the President's back.

Suddenly a helicopter flew by the windows, cutting off further conversation as everyone sprinted to the balcony.

Cloud stepped forward as the helicopter flew in low and Rufus jumped to the balcony followed by Rude and Reno.

"Rufus Shinra. What are you doing here?" Cloud asked.

"I came to check on the company. I heard the reports of what happened and I wanted to see if my promotion was secure." Rufus said coldly as he peered through one of the windows. "Looks like the reports were correct. I now run the company."

"Who is he?" Tifa whispered to Satoshi.

"Rufus Shinra, former vice-president of Shinra, now the President by the look of things." Satoshi replied as he gripped the hilt of one of his swords warily. "Keep your guard up. I don't trust this."

As Satoshi was talking, Rufus had launched into a speech about running the world through fear as Reno and Rude took positions on either side of their boss.

"Dat's it! I'm sicka yo mouth!" Barret shouted as he raised his gun arm. Cloud stepped in front of Barret, cutting off his line of fire.

"Leave it Barret. I want you to get Aerith and the rest out. I'll take care of Rufus." Cloud said as he drew his sword and split a second blade from it.

Jessie stepped up next to Cloud. "I'm not leaving, so you can just deal with it." Jessie said as she focused for a moment and lightning crackled up her left arm as her right wreathed itself in flame.

Aerith sighed as she kicked her staff into a spin before catching it in both hands as she stepped forward as well. "I'm not leaving the two of you to this. Knowing Cloud, you won't have the common sense to run if you need to."

"The rest of you make sure we have a way out." Cloud said, never taking his eyes off the trio in front of him.

"Got it." Satoshi said as he led Barret, Tifa, and Red back into the building.

Without warning, Jessie fired a bolt of lightning at Rude, who leaped to the side as the bolt thundered by. Rude crossed his arms in front of him to block the fireball Jessie threw his way. When he brought his arms down, Jessie was already there, throwing a kick at his side.

Rude blocked the kick, noting Jessie's strength with surprise.

As Jessie and Rude clashed, Reno charged at Aerith. Aerith simply sidestepped his clumsy charge before knocking him in the back of the head with her staff, causing him to crumple to the ground. She jerked her head back in shock as Reno stood almost as soon as he hit the ground and swung at her head with his baton. Reno smirked as he drew back for another swing before being bent over by the force of Aerith's blow to his stomach. Aerith spun her staff around behind her and whacked Reno on the back of the head once more sending him to the ground face first. Aerith sighed as the red haired man rose once more.

Cloud charged at Rufus, starting off with a simple thrust with his left blade. Rufus turned to the side to avoid being impaled before flipping over Cloud's follow up swing with his right blade. Cloud tracked his opponent through the air as he flipped once and landed several feet away.

"For a paper pusher, you aren't half bad." Cloud commented before charging once more, only to skid to a stop when Rufus raised a pistol and fired. Cloud deflected the first two shots before leaping to the left. He landed and tucked into a forward roll as Rufus fired two more rounds at where Cloud used to be. Rufus's eyes widened in shock when Cloud lunged out of his roll at the young president. Rufus sidestepped Cloud's downward chop, only to be kicked in the face when Cloud dug his sword into the rooftop and spun around the handle. Cloud pulled his sword from the concrete and connected the two blades, leaving his left hand free, which he used to hurl a fireball at Rufus. Rufus shot the swirling ball of fire out of the air, only to duck, and loose some hair, as Cloud leaped through the remnants of the fireball and swung at his head. Rufus somehow dodged a few more of Cloud's high speed slashes before leaping back, desperately trying to create distance between them.

"Give it up Rufus. You can't beat me." Cloud said as he split another blade off of his sword.

Several floors down

Tifa and Satoshi stood tensely in the glass elevator, having volunteered to clear this route while Barret and Red checked the inside of the building. They looked up as another elevator slowly caught up to theirs.

"Well looks like this path isn't as clear as we thought it was…" Satoshi said as the other elevator pulled even with them and the machine inside leveled twin chain guns at the pair. Satoshi pushed Tifa out of the way as the thing opened fire, causing the glass between them to shatter. He took two steps to the left and drew one of his blades before lunging through the broken glass and into the elevator with the security robot. As the thing tried to turn to track Satoshi's fast moving form, Tifa stepped out of cover and pointed, throwing a bolt of lightning at the machine. It twitched for a few seconds before beginning to turn back toward Tifa. As it lined up a shot, Satoshi stabbed both of his blades into the thing's back. Using his two blades as handholds, Satoshi threw the robot from the elevator before jumping back into the elevator with Tifa.

"I'm not gonna lie here, that was rather impressive." Tifa said as she watched the mechanical guard fall to the pavement below.

Satoshi shrugged as he replaced his swords in their harnesses. "It irritated me." He said before the sound of helicopter blades made itself known. Satoshi looked over Tifa's shoulder to see a guard robot flying even with their elevator. "Fuck this noise." Satoshi said as he pressed the stop button, causing the flying machine to pass them. He pried to doors open and both of them abandoned the elevator. Satoshi pulled out a phone as Tifa looked up and down the hall they found themselves in. "Barret, when Cloud checks in, tell him not to take the elevators. They got all kinds of flying metal death traps out there." Satoshi finished before snapping his phone closed and turning to Tifa. "Lets get back to the first floor." Satoshi said as he led the way toward the stairs.

Roof

Cloud, Aerith, and Jessie stood watching as the helicopter took off, taking their three opponents with it.

"We need to get out of here." Aerith said. "Not just out of the building, but Midgar as well."

"I agree." Cloud said. "Satoshi and I need to look into what Sephiroth has planned anyway. Whatever it is, it can't possibly be good."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Jessie asked as she led the way back inside. Once they entered the president's office, Cloud pulled out his phone and flicked it open.

"Which way?" He asked, prompting a reply from the other end of the line. "Stairs or internal elevators? Got it. See you in the lobby."

"What's wrong with the external elevators?" Aerith asked.

"Evidently, Satoshi broke them." Cloud said, causing Jessie to laugh. Cloud gave her a serious look.

"You're not joking?" Jessie asked.

"Nope. Satoshi tends to break things when he fights."Cloud explained. "Fortunately, it's never

something on his side." He finished as he led the way to the stairs. "Lets go, we've got a bit of a hike."

Lobby

Cloud, Aerith, and Jessie stepped out of the elevator to see Satoshi seated on his motorcycle while Barret attempted to hotwire a truck from the display with only one hand.

"Dis aint workin…" Barret mumbled before cursing loudly as the wires shocked him. "Cloud git yer pokey headed ass ova here an gimme a hand!"

Cloud hurried over and had the truck running in less then a minute.

Cloud looked the truck over before making a decision. "Tifa, you drive the truck, Jessie and Aerith, ride with her."

"Guess dat leaves me an Red here with the truck bed." Barret said as he climbed in. Satoshi looked out the door.

"Cloud, looks like you and me are gonna have to run interference for the truck. They've got biker cops out there and they look mean."

"Not a problem." Cloud replied as he stored all but one of his swords in the racks on his bike. The last one he stashed in his harness. He started his bike and gunned the engine before breaking out the second story window and falling to the road below, followed by Tifa in the truck and Satoshi on his bike.

As they fled down the highway, they were harassed by the Shinra motorcycle police, but thanks to Tifa's driving and Cloud and Satoshi cutting down any that rushed the truck, they made it out of the city in short order. Once outside the city wall, the Shinra police chasing them spilt off and returned to their building. Cloud signaled Tifa and Satoshi to stop.

"We should head for Kalm. We can regroup there and decide on our next move." Cloud said.

"I agree." Satoshi said. "Besides, I haven't been to Kalm in forever."

"Well I'm not riding cooped up in this truck all the way to Kalm." Tifa said, sending a 'look' at Satoshi.

"There's plenty of room on my bike if you want to ride with me." Satoshi replied, prompting Tifa to shoot out of the truck and hop onto the back seat behind him. Aerith and Jessie didn't even ask Cloud. They simply got out of the truck and walked over. Aerith took the seat immediately behind Cloud while Jessie sat behind Aerith.

Barret sighed. "Looks like it's just you an me." Barret said to Red as he hopped out of the truck bed and slipped into the driver's seat. Red took the seat next to him. "Just don't shed on my new seats." Barret said, already claiming the truck as his own. Red rolled his eyes as Barret shifted the truck into gear and drove off, followed by Cloud and Satoshi.

"You know, we still haven't discussed what I'm going to pay you for your services." Aerith commented over Cloud's shoulder as they rode.

"Well you haven't made an offer yet." Cloud replied.

"How about I go on a date with you?" Aerith asked.

"You know, if we hadn't already talked about this, I might be mad right now." Jessie said, suddenly entering the conversation.

"Wait, you two talked this out already?" Cloud asked. "Don't I get a say in this?"

"Nope." Aerith replied. "Get used to it."

Satoshi laughed as Cloud hung his head.

"What's so funny?" Tifa asked.

"Looks like Aerith and Jessie just told Cloud that they both want him." Satoshi said with a chuckle. "Hope he gets used to those two running his life quick, or he's in for a rough ride."

"And do you think I run your life?" Tifa asked.

"Indirectly." Satoshi replied. "You aren't bossy, but I do consider your wants and needs heavily when making decisions."

"Good answer." Tifa said as she rested her head on Satoshi's shoulder.

Saxyguy – Yeah, I know it's been forever since I updated any of my stories, but military life doesn't leave one with a whole lot of free time, and most of my free time is spent sleeping. But just remember, I will never abandon a story, it just might take me forever to update it.


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